World Champion
by Azurite
Summary: Téa goes to the Duel Monsters World Championships with one goal in mind. Of course, it's not what anyone expects. Will she see herself through, or embarass herself first? [AU, Oneshot, implied Azureshipping]


**World Champion  
**A Yu-Gi-Oh ONESHOT by Azurite  
azurite AT fanfiction DOT net  
azurite DOT incandesce DOT org

Completed: July 26, 2004

This is yet another previously-LJ-exclusive oneshot, now brought to you, the masses on public archives (and my site)! It was inspired by my adventures at the Yu-Gi-Oh World Championships in July, 2004. It's implied Azureshipping (Seto x Téa), as usual.

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, its characters, etc. This is a work of entertainment, not-for-profit.

This is an Alternate Universe fic-- none of the characters have met/know each other in the way you think they do-- that is, what you may have seen/read in the anime or manga.

* * *

"I can't do it."  
"You've been _staring _ at him all day, will you just do it?"  
"But Yugi--" Téa wailed, wringing her hands, "He's **Seto Kaiba**! Champion duelist, corporate executive, and voted Hottest Guy of the Year by EGG magazine! I can't just walk up to him and-- and..."  
"And glomp him?" Joey put forth. 

The three of them were at the World Championships for Duel Monsters, but Yugi, as a relative new duelist wasn't participating. Téa knew how to duel, but her decks were in serious need of tweaking-- but she simply didn't have the courage to walk up to top duelists and ask them about their decks-- let alone _glomp _ them.

But she'd PROMISED.

And of course, Joey only made matters worse. He was a funny, interesting guy --Téa was sure her classmates would adore him-- and he was one of those types that acted before thinking. They'd just met that day at the Championships, while Téa dueled Yugi, and they'd all instantly hit it off. Joey witnessed every second of Téa's plight. It had started out simple enough-- she promised her fellow female classmates that if she saw the famous Seto Kaiba, she would walk up to him and ask him if she could _glomp _him. Most people didn't even know what glomping **was **.

_'A very... enthusiastic hug.' _ Téa defined mentally. More like a running-jump into someone else's arms. Sort of like what Shampoo did to Ranma in _Ranma 1/2 _. If one glomped properly, it could either suffocate someone or smother them with every inch of the glomper.

"Aw, forget this," Joey grumbled, yanking Téa out of her chair, and walking up to Seto Kaiba. The trenchcoat-clad teen was dueling someone using his brand new Duel Disk II system, and the spectacle drew thick crowds all around him and his opponent. But Joey wasn't daunted by the hordes at all-- he fought his way through, his hand firmly gripping Téa's wrist.

The closer they got, the more the butterflies in Téa's stomach flapped away. She was starting to get a bit dizzy-- and despite the air-conditioned convention center, she was absolutely sure that she was feeling feverish, sweaty, and hot. Sure, Seto Kaiba was _cute _ and all, but why was meeting him like this making her so... so **nervous**?

_'Definition: giddy schoolgirl. What's **wrong ** with me!' _

She could just back out of it. Go back to school and tell Miho and the others that Seto Kaiba hadn't been there at all. But of course, they'd find out. If not from Yugi, then from any of the other hundreds of people that were at the championships. Everyone who was **anyone ** knew who Seto Kaiba was, and they ALL knew that he was going to be at the Championships. He was, after all, the reigning World Champion...

"Hey!" Joey wormed his way through the crowd and poked Seto Kaiba firmly on the shoulder. The brunette had a bit of a height advantage on Joey, but that didn't deter the blonde one bit. He poked again-- harder, this time, and catching a glance from the rich duelist.

"Yes?"

"Can she glomp you?" Joey shoved Téa forward, who blushed crimson and bowed her head. Oh, how embarrassing...

"What?"

"Can she hug you? She wants to hug you," Joey explained flatly, as if there were nothing unusual about Téa's request. Seto Kaiba blinked back, and dropped his head --just a fraction of an inch, really-- but Joey took that gesture as a nod. He pushed Téa forward, and she swallowed her pride (all eyes were on **her**, after all...) and closed the gap between herself and Seto Kaiba-- pushing herself against him in a tight hug.

It wasn't a very long moment at all-- but that moment could have lasted an eternity, with the way he stumbled backwards slightly, his hands just barely grazing Téa's hip. The thick smell of his leather trenchcoat, the freshly laundered aroma of his shirt, and something else --his shampoo, maybe?-- all imprinted themselves into her mind in the instant before she pulled away. Her face was scarlet and her eyes averted, but she'd done what she'd come to do, and that was enough for her.

No one but Joey and Yugi seemed to notice Kaiba's stunned expression; instead they were both grinning at Téa as if she had won the World Championships.

It wasn't until much later --after Kaiba soundly beat his opponent in the finals and was, once again, crowned World Champion-- that Téa saw him up-close again. No, not just up-close... walking right up to her!

_'I must be imagining things. There is **no ** way that Seto Kaiba is walking up to **me **-- not after that stunt I pulled. I'm amazed he didn't have me sued or something...' _

Still, the memory made her a bit giddy, the happiness burbling up inside her stomach and spreading to her face. She couldn't help but smile as he walked her way...

And stopped right in front of her.

_'Oh shit.' _

"Uh--" He didn't know her name, of course. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? "I think this is yours." Kaiba stretched out a hand, much to Téa's curiosity. To her astonishment, one of her beloved bracelets --in three separate pieces-- lay on his hand.

"My bracelet..." Téa murmured. She hadn't even realized it was missing. It must have come off when she'd glom-- er, _hugged _ Kaiba-- and he'd kept it, all this time! Even while he dueled...?

Still, it was broken. And there was a piece missing, meaning it couldn't be fixed.

Kaiba nodded, assured that the fractured piece of jewelry was indeed hers, and turned away. Téa was still staring at the purple beads in her hand, a bit forlorn that she'd broken the only piece of nice jewelry she'd gotten as a present from Miho, back when her classmate had gone to China.

_'Miho will be so upset...' _

Well, Téa actually doubted that, since Miho was a very nice and forgiving person. Besides, the girl was probably much more keen to learn about Téa's encounter with Seto Kaiba...

When Téa glanced up again, Kaiba turned and strode back to her, opening his ever-present silver briefcase on the table beside her. The case was filled with stacks and stacks of rare cards --the most expensive and hardest to find in the world, and staples of Kaiba's unbeatable deck. He reached in and pulled out a single card, holding it out to Téa.

"I know it won't make up for your broken bracelet, but here."

"I--" She was about to say, 'I can't take this,' but Kaiba just shoved the card into her hands atop the beads, and walked away quickly. Joey and Yugi, returning from the restaurant with hot dogs in hand, glanced from the departing champion to Téa, who stood befuddled in place. She glanced at the card in her hand, her jaw dropping.

_'The Dark Magician Girl?' _ It was one of the rarest cards EVER! She only knew that because Yugi sported the matching card-- the Dark Magician, in his deck. And the Dark Magician was pretty rare in and of itself...

"What was that all about?" Yugi asked, not noticing the card in Téa's hands.  
"Did he give ya his numba or somethin'?" Joey asked, peering at the card in her hands. His eyes then widened, realizing it was a Duel Monsters card. "WHOA!"  
"What is it?" Yugi asked, peering up at Téa. He caught sight of the card, his eyes widening to the size of plates (and considering Yugi's eyes were already the size of saucers, you could tell he was surprised). "Wow! Dark Magician Girl! That's a great card, Téa."

"Not just any card," Téa murmured, her cheeks still red, "A card from a World Champion."


End file.
